Lincoln, Pacific star was champ on field and off

Tuesday

Aug 20, 2013 at 12:01 AMAug 20, 2013 at 11:28 AM

Jeff Russell had a passion for life, especially sports.

Bob Highfill

Jeff Russell had a passion for life, especially sports.

The Lincoln High and Pacific standout, who played and coached professional football, extracted every ounce of his potential with seldom-seen determination that was wonderful to watch. Off the field, his charisma and graciousness were as impressive as his athletic prowess.

Russell, who was inducted into the Stockton Athletic Hall of Fame in 2011, lost his two-year battle against cancer Sunday morning at Houston Hospice with his family by his side. He was 41.

Russell was a champion racquetball player as a youth, honing his skills at Quail Lakes Athletic Club in Stockton, then owned by his parents, Sandy and Bill Russell, who split their time living in Capitola and Mexico. Russell not only lettered in football, basketball and baseball at Lincoln, he earned all-league honors in each sport. Jim Rubiales, who coached at Lincoln for more than 30 years, had Russell on his San Joaquin Athletic Association championship football squads in 1989 and 1990. He said Russell, who played quarterback and defensive back, and was the Trojans' kicker and punter, could have played any sport in college, but football was his favorite.

"In my opinion, he is the greatest athlete in Lincoln history. And when I say athlete, I mean a person who did everything well," said Rubiales, an assistant varsity football coach at Elk Grove-Franklin. "Here's a guy that kicked off, punted, played defense, played quarterback, ran the ball, threw the ball. There was nothing he couldn't do."

Russell had a penchant for making the big play when his team needed it the most, such as when he kicked two 48-yard field goals to win a football game or when he sank the winning shot against Sacramento-Kennedy in the section basketball playoffs. And his leadership and motivational abilities inspired his teammates and coaches.

"Jeff not only made me look like a better coach, he made me a much better person," said Tom Galvin, who coached Russell on Lincoln's varsity basketball teams in 1989 and 1990. "He taught me patience and how to think out of the box. Jeff knew when to insert his humor. He was really intense, but he knew when to say the right thing that would diffuse the tension."

Russell considered college football offers from Tennessee and San Diego State but chose to stay home at Pacific, where he played his freshman year for Walt Harris and his sophomore through senior seasons for Chuck Shelton. Pacific discontinued football following the 1995 season, a year after Russell had graduated with a degree in English.

"I remember him being an outstanding high school player," Harris said in a 2006 Record article. "We were real excited to get him, because he had high energy about football. Football was real important to him."

Though undersized at 6-foot and 190 pounds, Russell played the demanding position of safety in college and had a ball-hawking style. In 1994, the senior earned first team All-Big West Conference honors, contributing to Pacific's first winning season (6-5) in 17 years, when he led the Tigers in tackles (79) and interceptions (five).

After college, Russell was an assistant football coach at Lincoln and played for the Amsterdam Admirals of NFL Europe, the Los Angeles Extreme of the XFL and the Nashville Kats, Memphis Pharaohs, San Jose Saber Cats and New York City Hawks of the AFL. He also coached for the AFL's Detroit Fury and New Orleans VooDoo, and was a coach and general manager of the Utah Blaze. He earned a master's degree from Middle Tennessee State while playing for the Pharaohs.

About two years ago, Russell was diagnosed with mantle cell lymphoma and underwent several surgeries and treatments. The cancer went into remission twice, but both instances were short-lived.

"Through it all, from the time he got diagnosed to the time he died, he never complained and never gave up," Sandy Russell said. "He always thought there was going to be one more clinical trial or therapy right to the end."

Russell lived in New Orleans with his wife, Jena, and their 15-month-old son, Stryker. Russell also leaves behind his parents and sister, Gina Libby. Plans for a memorial service in Stockton are pending.